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South Mountain State Battlefield Gains National Register Of Historic Places Status

Boonsboro, Md. (February 22, 2011) — South Mountain State Battlefield
is now part of the National Register of Historic Places. Officials received
confirmation last week that the park would be featured on the National Park
Service’s list of sites, buildings and objects significant in American history,
archeology and engineering.

“We are grateful to the Friends of South Mountain State Battlefield, who
initiated the effort to place the State Park on the National Historic Register,”
said Maryland State Parks Superintendent Nita Settina. “This news comes just in
time for the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, further raising public
awareness of the context and dramatic events that led to the Battlefield’s
historic significance.”

The Friends of the South Mountain State Battlefield in partnership with State
Battlefield staff first applied in 2007. Placing the battlefield on the National
Register of Historic Places is a huge step in an ongoing preservation effort.
The National Register of Historic Places opens up many grant opportunities that
are currently unavailable to both the friends group and the State park itself.

Battlefield neighbors who live within the designated districts will be
encouraged (but not required) to maintain their properties in a manner that best
reflects the landscape’s appearance as it existed in September 1862. Being on
the list may open up some financial benefits for the landowners especially for
those looking for grants and/or tax credits to maintain their properties. It
will neither limit their ability to develop their land, nor give the state the
power to condemn properties.

The Battle of South Mountain occurred Sunday, September 14, 1862. It was the
turning point of the Maryland (or Antietam) Campaign: a campaign that involved
Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s first invasion into Union territory. Many
historians agree that a victory on Union soil in 1862 represented the South’s
best chance for winning independence. At stake for the South was foreign
diplomatic recognition and intervention.

Southerners believed that the advent of foreign intervention would have
persuaded a war weary North to negotiate a peace. One successful victory on
Northern soil would have done more for the South than all their victories in
Virginia and elsewhere combined.

The Battle of South Mountain was no skirmish. It involved two full corps of
General George B. McClellan’s Army of the Potomac, and a good portion of a
third. It also involved two divisions of Lee’s Army. The casualty rate was
relatively high, especially for the Confederates who lost about 15 percent of
their force-soldiers. The battle in Fox’s Gap was especially violent and
protracted, as fighting ebbed and flowed across the fields near the present-day
Appalachian Trail from 9 a.m. to dusk. The famed Union Iron Brigade first began
to build its reputation through their persistent assaults on Turner’s and
Frostown Gaps.

Two future presidents: Rutherford B. Hayes and William McKinley fought at Fox’s
Gap with Hayes sustaining a significant wound. Two notable generals, Union
General Jesse Reno and Confederate General Samuel Garland, died fighting at
Fox’s Gap.

For the official announcement, visit nps.gov/history/nr/nrlist.htm

For more information about the Friends of South Mountain state Battlefield and
to see the completed National Register of Historic Places application visit
friendsofsouthmountain.org/aboutus.html

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources is the state
agency responsible for providing natural and living resource-related services to
citizens and visitors. DNR manages nearly one-half million acres of public lands
and 17,000 miles of waterways, along with Maryland's forests, fisheries and
wildlife for maximum environmental, economic and quality of life benefits. A
national leader in land conservation, DNR-managed parks and natural, historic
and cultural resources attract 11 million visitors annually. DNR is the lead
agency in Maryland's effort to restore the Chesapeake Bay, the state's number
one environmental priority. Learn more at www.dnr.maryland.gov